Guest View: A scoop of gratitude

As an expression of my gratitude I brought ice cream to the Threshold Academy Board of Directors.

Comment

By Victoria Simon Principal of Threshold Academy

Ionia Sentinel - Standard-Ionia, MI

By Victoria Simon Principal of Threshold Academy

Posted Apr. 17, 2014 at 10:56 PM

By Victoria Simon Principal of Threshold Academy

Posted Apr. 17, 2014 at 10:56 PM

As an expression of my gratitude I brought ice cream to the Threshold Academy Board of Directors.

To the first Board member, a former school parent, I gave the very best chocolate ice cream I could find. It was the richest, creamiest, highest quality ice cream in the store – with a whopping 260 calories per serving – but it was worth it to honor her rich dedication to the school. To the second Board member (who is trying to watch her calorie in-take) I gave the best ice cream by selecting the 100 calorie per serving, 1 gram of fat TruMoo chocolate ice cream.

Another Board member is retired and on a fixed income so I gave him the best chocolate ice cream I could find by selecting the lowest cost per serving Great Value chocolate ice cream cup. The next Board member is an intellectual so I figured she deserved, not ice cream, but Breyer's Chocolate Gelato. It was pricey but she sure is valuable! For the practical, no-nonsense Board member, I brought "Chocolate Ice Cream" so simply labeled there wasn't even a brand name on it. This selection was not the highest or lowest in price or calories. There was nothing unique about it – it was just ice cream!

Which gift was best? The ice cream with rich, high quality ingredients just as some might say a high performing, college readiness school is the best? For someone who is dieting, high calorie ice cream might not be the best just as a struggling learner might not feel a college prep school is the best. Some might think gelato is better than ice cream, just as some faithful families feel schools with God integrated in education are better and choose a parochial education.

For most of us, ice cream is ice cream and is meant to simply be enjoyed without analyzing all of these options and want the regular chocolate ice cream just as the bulk of students attend traditional public schools. The Great Value ice cream cups with their clean, safe package and basic ingredients that meet FDA standards are comparable to the needs of students who aren't looking for a high performing academic education or social pressure or additional expenses – they just want an education in the nurturing, safety of a caring environment, like the learners at Threshold Academy.

I could have selected chocolate ice cream filled with chunks of brownies and ribbons of caramel just as there are magnet schools and charter schools that are embedded with extras such as arts, aviation or science-technology-engineering-math (STEM) or I could have purchased the most expensive Haagen-Dazs to represent private or boarding schools. I could have even brought a fruit sherbet because chocolate or dairy don't suit everyone just as some families might homeschool or enroll in a virtual school.

Page 2 of 2 - Ice cream richness is often defined by butter fat but the overall quality should not be rated only on fat content. The "best" ice cream depends on the traits desired by the connoisseur. Academic quality of schools is often defined by test scores but the overall performance of a school should not be based on how students score on a single assessment. There are many aspects on which to rate schools. Threshold Academy was the best option for many area children.

Thank you to the Threshold Academy Board of Directors, for the service you have provided for students with individual learning needs, social concerns and behavioral challenges. I appreciate our Board members for understanding, advocating and caring. As an expression of my gratitude I brought them the best ice cream.

Victoria Simon is the principal of Threshold Academy. The elementary charter school was created to serve students in Ionia and Montcalm Counties who need a nurturing environment. "The Small School with a Big heart" is operated by EightCAP, Inc., a community action agency The authorizer of the charter school recently announced it will not renew the charter contract and it is likely the school will close in June.